The term bomber gap was used during the cold war for the primary purpose of

 B)greatly increasing military spending.

Explanation: When politicians claimed there was a "bomber gap" between the Soviets and the United States, the effect was that Congress began greatly increasing military spending. This was to narrow that gap so the U.S. would not fall behind the USSR. It turns out, though, such a gap never existed.

b. germany and italy

by 1880, germany had more rail lines than great britain and russia.